


i'm on fire (over you)

by rocketshiptospace



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, First Kiss, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-14 12:35:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29046240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rocketshiptospace/pseuds/rocketshiptospace
Summary: Alex reaches up his hand to touch Willie’s cheek, and Willie leans into it almost instinctively. Their faces are a lot closer than Alex had initially thought, and suddenly he feels himself pitching forward, pulling Willie towards him, their mouths only inches apart-There’s a plop somewhere to their left. “Guys! You gotta hear this song I just wrote, it’s insane, wait let me-“ Luke, who has just poofed into the room, looks at Willie and Alex as they hastily shuffle apart. “Am I interrupting something?”“NO!” Alex says, way too loud, at the same time Willie says, “What, no, nothing.”Or, the five times Alex wants to kiss Willie and the one time he finally does.
Relationships: Alex Mercer/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms)
Comments: 21
Kudos: 225





	i'm on fire (over you)

**Author's Note:**

> hello yes i recently binge watched the entirety of jatp in like,,, one day and now. here we are?

  1. _The Orpheum_



There’s hope, still. If they can pull this off, if they play The Orpheum and fulfill their unfinished business, they might actually survive all of this. Yet standing here, in front of Willie, about to say goodbye to him for what might be the very last time, Alex doesn’t feel very hopeful.

He feels devastated. 

He takes a step toward Willie, uncertain of how to go from there, and Luke and Reggie immediately get the hint, blending into the background without a word. “I know…” He starts, even though right now he feels like he doesn’t know anything, “how much you’re risking. Thank you, Willie,” he says. He’s having a hard time making eye contact, afraid of what he might see.

Willie smiles, but it’s small and doesn’t quite reach his eyes. He lightly taps Alex’s arm before saying, “I told you. I’d do anything for you.”

And god, isn’t that just the worst? He’s finally found a guy who he feels like understands him. Someone who makes him laugh, someone who makes him feel okay when so much is not okay right now. Someone who would apparently do _anything_ for him. And he’s going to have to leave him here while he moves on to the afterlife. It might take years before he sees Willie again, _if_ he ever sees him again.

For a split second he considers stepping forward and kissing Willie, right then and there. They would have that moment, for the rest of eternity. But even Alex is not that cruel. Instead, he lunges forward and pulls Willie into a hug that he hopes conveys everything he doesn’t know how to say.

After a second, Willie melts into the hug and for a few blissful moments, it’s just them, and everything is going to be _okay._

Alex has to make the conscious decision to pull away, because otherwise there’s a chance he’s never going to let go of Willie again. And right now, his band needs him. No matter how badly he wants to stay in Willie’s arms forever. “All right, you uh…” _should stay with me forever, should run away with me, should never let me go,_ “you better get outta here before Caleb catches you with us,” he says, looking down.

“Yeah,” Willie says, and he smiles tentatively, “I’ll see you around, hotdog,” he laughs, albeit a bit stilted, and turns around to skate away.

Alex can’t seem to smile back at him, can only think about how Willie _won’t_ see him around, how in a few hours, they’ll be crossing over and they possible won’t _ever_ see each other again.

Willie skates off into LA, not looking back, taking Alex’s heart with him.

  1. _The Museum_



They did it. Or, well, _Julie_ did it. They’re _free_ , and they’re still here. They get to play more music, hang around a bit more. Make so many more memories. And most importantly, _Alex gets to see Willie again._

He knows almost instinctively where to find him, and when he poofs into the museum they screamed in only a few weeks ago, he’s not surprised to find Willie sitting on the stone bench. He looks sad, so different from the boy that skated away from him earlier that day. That boy felt like he had to keep up a façade, had to pretend everything was okay. This one can let his tears flow without repercussions.

“Willie,” Alex whispers, afraid to break the silence but feeling uncomfortable with just _staring_ at him.

Willie’s head snaps up and when his eyes meets Alex’s, it’s like the whole world disappears for a second. “Alex?” Willie asks, tentative, like he’s not real, like Alex is not really there. That maybe, if he speaks his name, Alex will disappear into a puff of smoke.

“Yeah,” Alex says, “I’m alive. Or, well, dead actually. You know what I mean. Julie saved us, somehow.”

“Oh my god,” Willie says, and then suddenly Alex has his arms full of sobbing skater boy.

“It’s okay,” Alex whispers into Willie’s hair, stroking his back, “I’m okay.” They stand like that for a few seconds, before Willie finally pulls away.

Their faces are suddenly only inches apart, close enough to kiss. Alex considers it, just for a second, but almost immediately dismisses the thought. They’re both way too emotionally distressed right now. If he’s going to kiss Willie, he wants to do it right. Instead, he reaches up and wipes Willie’s tears away with his thumb. “Remember the last time we were here?” He asks, and Willie nods. “Great. Because I could use some more of that screaming right about now, what about you?”

(They scream until they are hoarse, and then they sit on that little stone bench and talk until the sun rises over the horizon. It’s not perfect, but it’s the beginning of something new.)

  1. _The Studio_



Willie has been hanging out with them a lot more the past few weeks, which makes Alex really happy. He somehow fits right into their weird little gang, joking around with his bandmates like he’s always been a part of it, somehow. It’s rare for them to be alone these days, even though not on purpose. All of them are glad to still be here, but it also means they’re having a harder time letting each other out of their sights. You never know when another crazy guy will show up with plans to hold them hostage in his spooky ghost club.

It’s fine, though. Alex loves his boys, and he loves spending time with them. Still, he’s glad when it’s finally just him and Willie in the studio. Reggie is off watching Ray and Carlos make dinner (apparently it’s pure entertainment), Julie is hanging out with Flynn, and Luke is wherever Luke is when he wants to be alone for a bit.

“Lil Nas X,” Willie says. They’re both sprawled out over the couch. One of Alex’s legs is slung over Willie’s, and Alex is trying very hard not to think about the spot where their calves touch.

He considers Willie’s words for a second. “See the problem is it _sounds_ fake, but so did all of the others that turned out to be actual celebrities. So I’m going to say real.”

Willie laughs, “You are correct. He’s a rapper. He had a song that featured Billy Ray Cyrus, you know him?”

“Isn’t that the guy who sings Achy Breaky Heart? Reggie loves him. He doesn’t seem like a rap kind of person, though,” Alex says, frowning.

Willie snorts. “Long story.”

Alex hums. “How is mister Cyrus doing anyway? I reckon Reggie would be excited to catch up on all the hits he’s missed.”

“Reggie’s going to be severely disappointed I’m afraid,” Willie says. “That was pretty much his only hit. Though his daughter has been putting out some seriously good stuff lately.”

“God, so much has happened since we’ve been gone, it’s almost daunting to try and catch up with it all,” Alex says, sitting up too so Willie and him are facing each other. “I just keep thinking about how we could’ve been part of that history, you know? If we hadn’t died.”

“But then we would’ve never met,” Willie says, and he’s smiling like it’s a joke, but Alex can see the truth in his eyes.

“That would have been such a shame,” Alex says, reaching up his hand to touch Willie’s cheek. Willie leans into it almost instinctively. Their faces are a lot closer than Alex had initially thought, and suddenly he feels himself pitching forward, pulling Willie towards him, their mouths only inches apart-

There’s a plop somewhere to their left. “Guys! You gotta hear this song I just wrote, it’s insane, wait let me-“ Luke, who has just poofed into the room, looks at Willie and Alex as they hastily shuffle apart. “Am I interrupting something?”

“NO!” Alex says, way too loud, at the same time Willie says, “What, no, nothing.”

Luke frowns at them for a second, but then he shrugs and continues talking about the new song he wrote, while Willie and Alex spend the rest of the afternoon aggressively not looking at each other and pretending like nothing happened.

  1. _The Skate Park_



Despite them not _actually_ kissing, Alex can’t stop thinking about that moment. Was it actually going to happen or did he just _think_ they were going to kiss? Did Willie even _want_ to kiss him? Did he even want to kiss Willie?

(Stupid question, of course he wanted to kiss Willie, he could think of nothing else.)

He blames his distracted mind on agreeing to let Willie teach him to skateboard, because that is clearly a terrible idea. Alex has stepped on a skateboard exactly once all his life, when he was 10, and he had immediately fallen off it. He’s sworn them off ever since.

But Willie seems really excited about it, chattering happily to Alex as they make their way over to the skate park. They could poof there, easily, but Alex finds that since he’s died, he’s really starting to appreciate just _walking_ somewhere. Plus, this means him and Willie are hanging out even _longer_ , so that’s always a good thing.

“It’s quite easy, really, it’s just about balance,” Willie says, like balance is a thing that just comes naturally to people. They’re standing somewhere at the edge of the skate park, where there’s not that many people. Around them, people are doing tricks on all kinds of rolling devices. Some of them Alex has never even _seen_ before. He feels utterly and completely out of his depth.

“Right,” Alex says, skeptically, “And the moon land was just about building a rocket.”

Willie laugh, “See that’s your first problem. You’re using your brain too much.”

Alex snorts, “Yeah, well, that’s kind of my default setting.”

Willie takes his hands, and Alex brains short circuits for only five seconds, which has to be a new record. “Here, let me help you.” Willie has put the skateboard down right in front of Alex’s feet and carefully tries to get Alex to step on it.

It’s wobbly, for sure, but it’s not _terrible_. If anything, it’s quite _easy_. Alex looks at Willie, delighted. “I’m doing it!”

“You are doing it!” Willie says, with a smile that’s taking over his entire face. He’s so unfairly beautiful, the light of the afternoon sun painting him in bright colors, that ridiculous smile, those eyes that are always sparkling with mischief.

And Willie’s lips, right there, just _waiting_ to be kissed.

Alex is leaning forward, and then suddenly Willie is leaning forward, and there’s that moment, _that moment_ where their lips almost touch, and Alex’s breath hitches in his throat-

And then suddenly he looses balance, the skateboard sliding away from under his feet, and he slams his forehead right into Willie’s

“Oh my god, I am _so_ sorry,” Alex says, once he’s managed to right himself. “I’m an _idiot_ , oh man, are you okay?” Willie is clutching his forehead, but he’s laughing too, so that either means he’s fine or he has a concussion and Alex has to get him to a hospital stat. “Quick, who’s the current president?” He asks Willie, and then frowns. “Wait, who _is_ the current president?”

“It’s okay, Alex, don’t worry about it,” Willie says, between laughs, “I’m fine, really. Going to retrieve my skateboard though,” he adds, pointing to where it’s steadily rolling towards a collection of bushes. As he poofs away, Alex curses himself for ruining the moment.

Willie poofs back only seconds later with his board in hand, “I think that’s enough skateboarding for a while, don’t you think? Wanna just walk around for a bit?”

“Yeah, that sounds like a better idea,” Alex says. Willie is still grinning at him, and Alex still wants to kiss him, but it feels like the moment is gone. So instead he follows Willie as he walks towards the beach, and vows to never in his life step onto a skateboard ever again.

  1. _The streets of LA_



A few days later they’re wandering the streets of Los Angeles. It’s early in the evening, and the streets are littered with people getting ready for a night on the town. The restaurants they walk past are absolutely packed, and the first people have started filtering in and out of the bars and clubs. The city is coming alive with the sounds of music and laughter, and Alex takes it all in. It’s a version of LA that’s so different yet so alike the one he used to know.

Next to him, Willie is listing weird food hybrids he’s missed over the past 25 years. “There was that time everyone was like _obsessed_ with black food. Like they just added black food coloring to everything and people would be in lines around the block. Oh, and the _cronut_. I can’t believe you missed out on the cronut.”

Alex frowns. “That doesn’t sound edible.”

“It’s surprisingly so,” Willie says, “It’s a combination of a donut and a croissant. Although, between you and me, it’s more like a donut shaped croissant than anything, but still. People went berserk for them. Still do, I think.”

Alex considers this. “You know what, that’s actually kind of genius. We should make all foods donut shaped. Brussel sprouts would be so much more fun to eat,”

Willie laughs. “Who knows? Could be a massive _hole_ in the market,” he wiggles his eyebrows as he says it, and Alex gives him a disapproving look and a gentle shove.

“That was terrible, you need to work on your puns.”

Willie sticks his tongue out to him. “That was a masterpiece and you’re just jealous you didn’t think of it.” He pauses. “Or should I say _jelly_ -ous.”

“Oh, now you’ve done it,” Alex says, and leaps forward to, well he’s not really sure _what_ he’s going to do when he gets a hold of Willie.

Not that it matters, because Willie jumps away right in time, which starts a mad chase through the streets of LA. Willie is laughing as he runs, Alex hot in pursuit. Eventually, Alex decides that a little cheating definitely isn’t beneath him, and poofs right in front of Willie, making him barrel straight into Alex.

“Gotcha,” Alex says. An unfortunate byproduct of this move is that their bodies are now squished very close together, faces only inches apart. Their eyes meet, and Alex thinks _‘This is it. This might_ finally _be it_.’

But then, just as their mouths almost touch, there’s a flash of light immediately followed by a loud boom, and suddenly the sky above them is breaking open and it’s pouring rain.

“A thunderstorm?!” Alex yells over the sound of the rain, “Really?!”

“It’s fine!” Willie yells back. “Ghosts can’t get wet!”

That’s not what Alex was upset about, but he appreciates the sentiment nonetheless, “Can ghosts get electrocuted?”

“I’m not sure, and I’m not planning on finding out,” Willie says, grabbing Alex’s hand. “Come on, let’s go find some shelter.”

_+1 The Tiny Awning_

‘Shelter’ really just means the tiny awning of a bar. It’s so small that they are all squished together, Willie’s elbow poking into Alex’s stomach and his hair is all in his face. Willie’s turned towards the street, watching other people running around to avoid the storm.

“What if someone decides to shelter right here? That would be weird, right?” Alex asks, nervously glancing towards a couple that’s headed straight their way.

“Nah, it’s fine,” Willie says, “we’re right next to the entrance of a bar, if people wanna shelter they’ll just do it in there, look.” The couple comes closer and closer, and then passes right by them into the bar.

Alex huffs. “Why aren’t _we_ hiding out in the bar, then?”

Willie turns to face him, and suddenly their faces are only inches apart. “Isn’t this so much more fun?” He asks, his breath fanning over Alex’s face.

“Yeah,” Alex stutters out, nearly breathless. Although he’s not sure he would categorize hiding out for rain storms under tiny little awnings is what he normally categorize as fun. But still, he has found that as long as Willie is around, everything is kind of ridiculously fun.

Speaking of Willie, he is so close Alex can count his individual eyelashes, can she the tiny flecks of gold in his brown eyes, can see-

Then, suddenly, _finally_ , his lips pressing against Willie’s.

It’s not perfect, because Willie’s head is tilted at a weird angle and his elbow is still digging into Alex’s side, but goddamn Alex wouldn’t have it any other way. Willie’s lips are soft, and they taste like toffee and mint and pure happiness. It’s the most magical thing that has ever happened to Alex. And that counts becoming an actual literal ghost.

When Willie pulls away, he has a huge grin on his face. “Wanted to do that for forever,” he says, sounding kind of breathless.

Alex laughs. “Yeah, I know that feeling,” he says, and then leans in for another kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> i have a tumblr!!! you can find me [here](http://violetevents.tumblr.com) :)


End file.
